The Medicinal Herb Info site was created to help educate visitors about the often forgotten wisdom of the old ways of treating illnesses. Many of today's drugs and medicines were originally derived from natural ingredients, combinations of plants and other items found in nature.

We are not suggesting that you ignore the help of trained medical professionals, simply that you have additional options available for treating illnesses. Often the most effective treatment involves a responsible blend of both modern and traditional treatments.

Water eryngo is a native perennial herb; its glaucous tuberous root sends up a simple stem, 1-5 feet in height. The long, taper-pointed leaves, 1 to 2 feet in length and 1/2 to 1 inch wide are net-veined and entire or remotely toothed. Blooming in August, the small, whitish flowers grow in spikes subtended by a whorl of bracts. The root is tuberous, aromatic and of a sweet acrid taste, resembling the parsnip.Back to Top

Rattlesnake master is used as a common name for Virginia snakeroot (E. aquaticum) and for E. yuccifolium, and for False Aloe (Manfreda virginica) of the Amaryllis family.
There are about 220 species in the genus, of which about 22 are found in North America.Back to Top

The root is very useful when chewed to promote the flow of saliva and thus aids digestion. In large doses, it is an emetic. It has been a remedy for chronic laryngitis and bronchitis, dropsy, gonorrhea, gleet, stones, inflammations of the sexual and urinary organs, and impotence. Native Americans used it as an emetic and diuretic, and the infusion to reduce fevers. It is a good substitute for Senega snakeroot (Polygala senega). Used internally and externally, it cures the bite of snakes and insects and wounds.Back to Top